The Republican journal., 1887-10-27
To the Crater of Popocatipetl.
SCALING TIE ICE-CONES TO AN ALTITUDE
MORE THAN FIVE THOUSAND FEET ABOVE
THE SUMMIT OF MONT BLANC.
CORRESPONDENCE of the Innrnal


AMECAMECA, MEX, Oct. Sth. Tlamacas,
the half way house Of Popocatipctl, lies in the
center of a mountain valley, 1880 feet above
the sea. Its volcanic soil supports only Il
scanty growth of coarse grass anda few gnared
pine trees. whose every twig is bcautited by
lichcns. .-"Gods autograph" according to the
Poet of the Sierras. There is nothing what
ever upon this skywar! rancho, or indeed any
where upon the mountain. but the sulphur
works: which consist of huge building cover
ing the furnaces, with roof open at both ends,
the muc-sheds and snth,'s cabin. Heights
pile themselves, peak above peak. around it on
all sides except toward the North. where 1t
slopes away to the valley of Pueha, thirty
miles distant. The Indians bring the crude
sulphur from the crater, packed in bags upon
their backs. down to ilamaca, to be '.sub-
lhacd,' which is done in elrthcrn jars.
NJ Charncy. the arch1ologist, who visited
this place some years ago, wandered of Il mile
OF two toward The West and discovered a lot
Of ,naccountalic pottery: but instead of being.
as he supposed. the relies of an extinct and
unknown people. it was doubtless placed there
hN the no less >upcrStitious Indians Of modern
iiul'S. WHO, Nntll tiaNlliH business on the
mountain. consider il necessary to appeasc the
evil spirit of heights. by offerings of food.
Having written permission from the owner
Of the mountain, Gen. Sanchez Ochea, to spend
tha nights at The halfway house, insiIrcs one
t'lr nest the place affords. But that is not say
ing much. The >milhy will obliginglv vacate
his caiin.-hut that is only a rude shelter of
pine boards. with plentiful interslires and
without a whole pare Of glass. Ton should
not expect however. to abe carried to the
skies on fowcrv beds of case but must make
the best of circumstances. You can cook the
supper YOU have brought over the furnace
fires. and there being but one bed within Il
radius of fifteen miles. and that i cot--the
cabin is always lcit to the ladies. if there be
any Of the PARTY. white the gentlemen bctakc
themselves tot the ncighborhood Of the furnace.
hen we went up. my companion Mrs.
Emily PIERCE arid myself were The first women
who had been seen at 'ila,nac:,s for many
years; consequently we came in for every
attention it was in III" power Of the inhabitants
to hc>tow. The kin,t-hcar!ed >mthy, WHO we
had literally turned out Of doors. rcappcarcI
at aii embarrassing jurrtllrc, (nobohy ever
hnori.~ iii MrNico), with bchcNoenec rad ting
from cf"ry line of his honest face and vi.
brass maj III either hlil,l, The latter. he eX-
p'aincd. were hot. and were used 10 pack sui!
phur in. aid placed beneath our blankets would
keep rs warm aS toast" have rcposct.
softer beds than these hraZcn mattresses, hut.
though suggestive Of that holy martyr roast
in" on his "ritiiron, We We're grateful for them.
for hc cold is intense at such an attitude. Bv
their aid. though the fumes Of The sulphu.
We're Sitting AMI the Indians who are Obliged
10 stir it all night long cough in the most
distressing way. we slept the sleep of the Just.
Next morning one must be astir by half past
three o'clock. because if bound for the summit,
ones life depends on being back here before
night fall Before leaving the cabin we aban-
doiied all sulcriluitics. banda@rd our feet and
ankles we'll with strips pf iialnti, and strapped
ON our spiked sandals over three pairs of
wocen hose. Contemplating those aesthetic
pedal decorations. we compared ourselves to
Roman peasants on the ampagna,-bui ain
confident that any peasant on earth would
have de>pisel them. Goggles, wells, mittcns
and harfock added the finishing touches to our
toilette. and under the cold rlimmcr Of the
crescent neon we set forth ON our upward
tolling. to the weird music of the wind whist
LING mournfulIy through the mos>y pines and
distant hoWlin@ Qf coyotes. whose fresh tracks
were visible Oh every side.
We had been warned to make our horses car
fy lis 10 the SnoWline. as all our strength
would he required from that point to the sum-
NIT; but rs we went up and up, over cintlers
and hro<en scorp. the animals suffered so
much frotn difficulty Of respiration that they
trenh!cd and staggered at every step. Long
before the Snow fields were reached their agony
was piiabc. and it seemed as if blood would
burst from their tiistencei no>trils; so at the
I
the poems and made the rest of the way Oh foot
These rocks. which We're evidently formed by
fire at some remote period. crop out of the
black sand iii most fantastic shapes and Strag-
Gle downward toward the valley. Into the top
most ledge. over $4,000 feet above the sea. Il
huge cross is Wedgc,l. marking the Death Of Il
nan who fell into the water.
In this part of the ascc: the lines of com
position are magnificent and the contrasts
startling. Across the vast. black umdulations.
On Mhi,t our exaggerated shadows fell with
marvellous ,liStinctncs>, appeared or disappear
e, in turn the rich, red, ra>tcllHted pro del
trailo and the dazzling white cXpanSc of our
uHi,au Muie. Backward from Las Cruces Law
a dizzy View of the world below. Wrapped in
our blankets, we sat long at the foot of that
lonely cross. contemplating the glorious scenes
and preparing for the supreme effort before Us.
From this point we look down upon the limit
less >now-iield> of lNtaccihuitl. spread out at
or feet. Far below runs The trail by which
tprtez and his soldiers approached the Valley
Of Mexico. From the western soln of this
mountain the conqucror> caught their first
glimpse OF the wonderful valley, with its pct-
urcsqHc as>emblage of waters, woodland and
cultivatc, plains. its shining cities and shadowv
hills The same scenes OF beauty that delight
cd those coyetous eyes nearly four centuries
ago. was unfo|'!c'l at our feet. The glimmer-
ing towers of the Capital, fifty miles away
once the proud city of Aztec king>--eould be
distinctly seer. Lakes and spires in the valley
of Puehia and the ''City of the Angels" We're
plainly visible, with various hues of hill and
dale between. Beyond towers the extinct vol
cano "Alalncke Malintzin. so namcd by the
Indians in honor of Cortez. while far away in
the east like a diadcm III the sky, shines the
white peak Of briZaha. distant l10 miles.
Against the mysterious Na>lnc>>. which none
can comprehend who have not stood far
above the clouds. stand Tie figures of our little
party ON the ledge of ock-insignificant atoms
in track!eSS space. Between Las Cruces and
the >noW-;ritl> liz about two hundred yards Of
almost perpendicular ascent. through fine,
sharp >rori:r. more than ankle deep, lccked
lirrc and there by drifts OF melting snow. One
OF the leading difficulties of the climb arises
from the exceeding thnnc>S of the air. recall
Ing Mr. lie Nye'> stale joke that hi- ''hrcath
came in short pants. though not related to the
kniekerbockcr family" Tourists are not tied
together hy ropes here. rs IN switzerland, but
are hauled mp. dragged up, boosted up, by the
| indispensable poems.
Arriving at the >noN-ine, for the first few
moments the cool air was Il luxury. We sat
down by it and lunchch. and from that point
took orr last backward view. Isolated PIN
naricS of ice stood up all around Us like monli-
mcnts in the black sand. and far below. cumtl-
lu% clouds filed Up the valley with symmetrical
arrangement. like pavement. Through furtiye
| openings charming" bits of earth appeared. re-
mnding of Holmes charming lines of Il spirit
homeSick in hcavcn," who looked back
"Io catch. cIchancc, some flashing glimpse of
green.
Or breath some wildwood fragrance, waited
Through the oucning gates of pearl
Nir. w. H. Bishop. who visited the crater in
iSS2, says that up to Las Cruces the effort is
| rewarded in View of ''thc kingdoms of the
world and the glory thereof which could not
he obtained elsewhere; but above this il has
| little more reward than that of being able to
| boast of it to your friends. Despite all pre-
| cautions. a few steps in the snow render ones
| feet SOen and numb with cold. There was a
| painful slipping and falling and blood-marks
| left by ungloyed hands. The grade is excess
| Sivc, the top invisible, and the prospect con-
| >istS of Jagged snow-pinnacles, without cessa-
| ton, IN endless staircase reaching into the
| sky Sometimes in the sun all these pinnacles
| glitter as if crllstcd with diamonds. again thick
| fugS. like gray pail. cover everything. There
| can be no more casting yourself down to rest
| in the warm Scorir. If you sit you are chill
ed; yet you must rest continually. Every step
| is Il calculation or an achievemcnt-you ealct-
late that you will allow yourself Il rest after
| ten or twenty more.
| The smooth. conc-like surface is covered by
SHOWS of unknown depth, which Fave been
thawing moons and freezing nights ever since
| the creation, maybe. 1t is slippery as glass
| and being almost perpendicular. would be in
| surmountable were it not for the innumerable
| icc-coumns everywhere projecting. One is
continually sliding backwards, but not more
| than Il foot or two before being brought to &
standstill by one of these pillars. But though
exceedingly laboriOus, there is little real danger
| in the aScent-if ones lungs and limbs can Ell